I'd love a bigger DEF tank...or less DEF consumption

[Mister 4x4]

Wait, so I can buy a few gallons of distilled water and pee in the tank after a night of hard drinking?

You'd be better off just filling it with distilled water. It will complain if you dilute it too much. But it complaining is better than the truck deciding to brick itself.

It was a joke fellas. But look it up - DEF is indeed 'essentially' purified water and pee, among a few other things. I'm actually surprised nobody's bio-hacked this yet so people could make their own - kinda like the ones who make home made bio-diesel from the fry-cooker oil. I wouldn't recommend bio-diesel, though. The Air Force uses it, and it turns to gel when it gets too cold, then fouls the whole fuel system - once it goes 'gel,' it's never quite right again, either.

 

[c3k]

I don’t think you should use VW’s diesel as a comparable vehicle to Ram’s diesel, specially the 3rd generation diesel, the second generation diesel basically shut down the emission system while highway driving and FCA got a slap on the hand for it, VW got caught, having the emissions system basically almost off unless it was connected to an emission testing facility.
If I was to switch things around in comparison to what you are saying about the small tank of DEF, I would say, I wish my fuel tank was a lot bigger, like 10 times bigger 330 gallons, so I could fill both the DEF and the fuel tank once per year!
I keep a 1 gallon jug of DEF in the rear floor compartment under the mat, in case of emergency, I get a warning to fill the DEF, 800km or 500 miles left before empty. I am never that far away from a gas station, but having the spare gallon is good reassurance.

My bold, above. My 2015 VW Passat TDi underwent the Stage 2 fix 5+ years ago. That's supposedly the increased DEF consumption fix. Still, with that, the tank lasts 10-12,000 miles.

 

[djevox]

I just picked up some bluedef platinum today. $54 for 5 gallons hurts a little, but if it lasts close to 10,000 miles then that’s fine.

 

[Andymax]

The second this things out of warranty, I’m DPF deleting it.

Are there tunes available for deleting? When i had an EcoDiesel the EPA was cracking down hard on the tuners such as GDE. Had to go to Canada to get a delete tune. Also, I assume you mean deleting the whole system, so you can get rid of the DEF/SCR system, right? Deleting DPF only has no effect on DEF.

 

[djevox]

Are there tunes available for deleting? When i had an EcoDiesel the EPA was cracking down hard on the tuners such as GDE. Had to go to Canada to get a delete tune. Also, I assume you mean deleting the whole system, so you can get rid of the DEF/SCR system, right? Deleting DPF only has no effect on DEF.

Yep, pretty much only Canada. I’ve done many things in life, but after getting hurt I learned programming and am now a software engineer working on space flight systems and the data that gets transmitted from them. I have no doubt that I could make the modifications, either through an add-on module I build, or through how I used to tune by just changing mapping and setting bits.

That being said, I have no desire to spend time on it and would rather pay someone else to do the legwork while I benefit.

 

[jent]

My bold, above. My 2015 VW Passat TDi underwent the Stage 2 fix 5+ years ago. That's supposedly the increased DEF consumption fix. Still, with that, the tank lasts 10-12,000 miles.

I am pretty sure even post fix they still never met the emissions they would have otherwise required: https://www.roadandtrack.com/new-cars/car-technology/news/a30021/vw-recall-fix-non-compliant/

I also have a diesel VW and post fix I don't even have a Urea tank. I would not be surprised if your post fix VW was failing to use the necessary amount of def to meet out emission standards.

 

[Aseras]

I just picked up some bluedef platinum today. $54 for 5 gallons hurts a little, but if it lasts close to 10,000 miles then that’s fine.

def is def, just buy the $8 jug at walmart. by spec there is 0 difference between any def, they cannot put additives or other substances in it, only DI water and Urea.

 

[DuckySaurusRex]

You know the funny thing is I noticed that and thought because i filled the thing on an incline it screwed the level up. went from the red band to 3/4 tank of def with one 2.5 gallon jug. So I didnt want to over fill of course so I waited until the gauge red half tank. Put 2.5 gallons in thinking that is full. while the gauge did say full...it started moving a lot faster than i thought it would. So that is interesting that they would have the gauge not really calibrated for the size of the tank...Any good way to tell when you are at the top of the def tank without spilling with a jug? My truck stop is usually backed up like crazy for the pump with a **** ton of tractors so I feel weird taking up a pump for 2 minutes.

 

[StuartV]

def is def, just buy the $8 jug at walmart. by spec there is 0 difference between any def, they cannot put additives or other substances in it, only DI water and Urea.

So, you're saying the manufacturer of BlueDEF Platinum is engaging in blatantly false advertising?

BlueDEF Platinum Diesel Exhaust Fluid - Old World Industries

BlueDEF Platinum with Advanced System Shield Technology is a premium platinum diesel exhaust fluid for your SCR system.

www.owi.com

If you click the Specs link on that page, it takes you to this:

https://asset.productmarketingcloud.com/api/assetstorage/2482_96eedd36-4670-4e1e-bb2e-30e40ce33059

Where it specifically says: "BlueDEF PLATINUM™ with advanced SYSTEM SHIELD™ technology is a mixture of high purity synthetic urea, deionized water, and our proprietary additive package".

Also, have you tried pouring some regular DEF on the ground and some BlueDEF Platinum on the ground and comparing what they look like after they both dry?

 

[StuartV]

I ran Buc-ee's pump DEF for a little while, then switched to BlueDEF Platinum.

Very roughly, I am getting 900 miles per gallon on the BD Platinum. I think I was getting roughly around 1000 MPG on the generic. This is after running BD Platinum for about 9,000 miles, so far. I got my truck in July and have put about 16,000 on it since then.

My ability to measure exactly is somewhat limited, since I don't have a pump showing volume down to the 1/1000th of a gallon to pump the BD Platinum from. So, I consider the Platinum basically equal to generic stuff, with regard to how much is used.

What I am counting on being true is that the additive package in the Platinum does reduce build-up in the exhaust system, compared to generic DEF. That is why I spend the extra money ($22/jug, delivered free from Walmart).

I guess it would be nice if the DEF tank were bigger, but I can't say I really care that much.

I run my DEF until I get a warning, then I add a jug of BD Platinum (2.5 gallons). That gets me another 2500 miles or so until the next time.

If I am leaving home on a trip that could possibly be longer than my onboard DEF will last, I pour in another jug before I leave, so I've got somewhere between roughly 3000 and 5000 miles of range with my onboard DEF.

If my trip is going to be longer than that, I'll just get DEF at convenient times/places along the way. Done that before, too. It's really not a big deal.

And, as for the comment about "if I'm going to stop and add DEF, I might as well just stop for the night", uhhh.... what are you doing when you add DEF?!?! If I am time-sensitive, I'll start looking for DEF way before I actually NEED it, and find a station that has DEF at the pumps. It adds 5 minutes (?) to my stop to fill up with diesel, to also top up with DEF.

If there are no convenient places to get DEF at the pump, I'll buy a jug (just about anywhere) and pour it in when I stop for fuel. Usually, you can get it at the same place you're filling up with diesel. So, going in and paying for a jug or two does take an extra 5 minutes, plus the 5 minutes or so to actually pour it in.

None of it is a big deal. I don't understand all the fuss.

I keep a supply of plastic disposable gloves in my driver's side RamBox. I put one on every time I fill up. I hate having hands that smell like diesel. Keeping a glove or two on while I pour in DEF is nothing and makes the whole process of adding DEF quick and painless.

 

[AV8OR]

To keep my DEF fresh I never add until the gauge goes below 1/4 tank and when I do add DEF it’s only one jug fluid.

Perhaps if I was going to do some long haul trailer pull I might bring it up to full but my short trailer pulls really don’t move the needle.